Question Number: 31674

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 8/4/2017

Petr of Prague, Czech Republic Czech Republic asks...

This question is a follow up to question 31673

I have one video to this topic from the Czech League. I mean exactly these types of situations.

https://tv.isport.blesk.cz/video/3580351/sparta-bohemians-maskova-ruka-spartane-marne-volali-po-penalte.html

In my opinion:
1) Player is not under pressure.
2) He sees the ball well.
3) Arm goes to the ball.
4) The arm is not in natural position.
5) It is his carelessness.

Decision of the referee is NO OFFENSE. Why? Thanks:-)

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Petr
Definitely NOT deliberate handling and the correct decision is to play on.
The ball is played with the foot and it rears up hitting the player on the arm.
As regards your questions I would disagree with 3 and 4 as in my opinion it does not move toward the ball yet the ball moves to the arm. Arms move all the time. It is part of body movement and I do not see any unnatural movement here.
I might add that any time a ball hits a players hand there will be howls of handball. I would go as far as to say that as low as 1 out of every ten times will be deliberate. This is one of the nine of NOT deliberate.

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi Petr,
I am 100% agreed with my colleague no infraction play continues!
The arm is not extended to intercept or block it is simply attached to the body this is exactly the opposite of my description in my recent post of the extended leg and extended arm where I did award a DFK because the arm and the leg were both extended into the path of the ball. Here it is OBVIOUS it was not a deliberate attempt to use the arms to play the ball. The ball comes up off the foot/leg and catches his underside arm that he was trying to move out of the way. MY gut screams play on!
Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Peter Grove

Hi Petr,
In your previous question, you referred to a situation where ''the player has the first touch fully under control'' and you seem to be saying that the clip linked to its an example of this. However in the clip the player does not have the ball under control. He is stretching for a ball which is coming towards him in the air, slightly out of his reach and it deflects upwards from his outstretched foot in an uncontrolled, unpredictable fashion.

Since there is no way he could have predicted where the ball was going to go after hitting his foot and the distance involved is so short that he had no time to react, I do not see how this can be considered ''a deliberate act of a player making contact with the ball with the hand or arm.'' I agree with my colleagues that this is not a deliberate handling offence.

The following questions were asked as a follow up to the above question...

See Question: 31683